Multi-band wireless signaling

Abstract

An antenna system for transducing radio-frequency energy includes: a first antenna sub-system comprising a plurality of radiators and a ground conductor, each of the plurality of radiators being sized and shaped to transduce millimeter-wave energy between first wireless signals and first electrical current signals; and a second antenna sub-system comprising a first radiator configured to transduce sub-6 GHz energy between second wireless signals and second electrical current signals, wherein the first radiator comprises the ground conductor.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. An antenna system for transducing radio-frequency energy, the antenna system comprising:
 a first antenna sub-system comprising a plurality of radiators and a ground conductor disposed in a module, each of the plurality of radiators being sized and shaped to transduce millimeter-wave energy between first wireless signals and first electrical current signals; and 
 a second antenna sub-system comprising a first radiator configured to transduce sub-6 GHz energy between second wireless signals and second electrical current signals, wherein the first radiator comprises a conductive portion, physically separate from the module, and the ground conductor, wherein the ground conductor is electrically coupled to the conductive portion. 
 
     
     
       2. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the conductive portion comprises a first section and a second section, the first section physically separated from the ground conductor by less than a twentieth of a wavelength of the sub-6 GHz energy over a majority of at least one edge of the ground conductor. 
     
     
       3. The antenna system of  claim 2 , wherein the first section comprises a meander line, of a monopole, that is disposed within the twentieth of the wavelength of the sub-6 GHz energy over a majority of a perimeter of the ground conductor to parasitically or capacitively couple the sub-6 GHz energy between the ground conductor and the meander line. 
     
     
       4. The antenna system of  claim 3 , wherein the ground conductor is rectangular with two length edges, a first width edge, and a second width edge, and the meander line is disposed within the twentieth of the wavelength of the sub-6 GHz energy over a majority of each of the two length edges, and a majority of the first width edge. 
     
     
       5. The antenna system of  claim 2 , wherein the ground conductor is planar, wherein the plurality of radiators overlap with the ground conductor transverse to a plane of the ground conductor, and wherein the second section does not overlap with the ground conductor transverse to the plane of the ground conductor. 
     
     
       6. The antenna system of  claim 2 , wherein the first section comprises a first monopole portion and the second section comprises a second monopole portion, the antenna system further comprising an aperture tuner communicatively coupled to the second monopole portion. 
     
     
       7. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the second antenna sub-system defines an opening through which the millimeter-wave energy and the sub-6 GHz energy, from the ground conductor, can wirelessly pass. 
     
     
       8. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein a length of the ground conductor is an odd multiple of a quarter of a wavelength of the sub-6 GHz energy ±10% of the wavelength. 
     
     
       9. The antenna system of  claim 1 , further comprising a display, the first antenna sub-system and the second antenna sub-system extending outside a perimeter of the display by less than 10 mm. 
     
     
       10. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the first antenna sub-system and the second antenna sub-system are collocated, with the first antenna sub-system being disposed inside a volume bounded by the second antenna sub-system. 
     
     
       11. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the sub-6 GHz energy is first energy and has one or more first frequencies below 6 GHz, wherein the conductive portion comprises a first monopole portion and a second monopole portion, the first monopole portion and the second monopole portion being configured to, in combination, radiate second energy with one or more second frequencies below 6 GHz. 
     
     
       12. The antenna system of  claim 11 , wherein the one or more second frequencies are between 700 MHz and 960 MHz and/or between 1.7 GHz and 2.7 GHz, and the one or more first frequencies are between 1.25 GHz and 1.7 GHz. 
     
     
       13. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the second antenna sub-system comprises a feed electrically coupled to the ground conductor. 
     
     
       14. The antenna system of  claim 13 , wherein the ground conductor is a first ground conductor, wherein the antenna system further comprises a printed circuit board that includes a second ground conductor, and wherein the first ground conductor is electrically connected to the second ground conductor. 
     
     
       15. The antenna system of  claim 14 , wherein the antenna system is disposed within a mobile device, and wherein the first ground conductor is rectangular and is connected to the second ground conductor via a conducting rim or frame of the mobile device. 
     
     
       16. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the antenna system is disposed within a mobile device comprising a rim, and wherein the first antenna sub-system is disposed in a gap provided by the rim. 
     
     
       17. The antenna system of  claim 16 , wherein the first antenna sub-system is physically separate from the rim at at least one end of the gap. 
     
     
       18. The antenna system of  claim 1 , further comprising a first sub-system feed structure comprising a plurality of conductive lines configured to communicatively couple the plurality of radiators to millimeter-wave signal circuitry disposed on a printed circuit board, wherein the plurality of conductive lines are disposed between conductive sheets and the conductive sheets are configured to couple the ground conductor to a ground plane of the printed circuit board. 
     
     
       19. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the conductive portion comprises an inverted-F antenna having a first conductor end, a second conductor end, and an intermediate point between the first and second conductor ends, the second antenna sub-system including a first electrical connection coupled between the first conductor end and circuitry configured to at least one of supply the sub-6 GHz energy or receive the sub-6 GHz energy, the second antenna sub-system further including a second electrical connection coupled between the intermediate point and a ground plane of a device including the antenna system, the second conductor end being open. 
     
     
       20. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the conductive portion comprises an inverted-F antenna having a first conductor end, a second conductor end, and an intermediate point between the first and second conductor ends, the second antenna sub-system including a first electrical connection coupled between the intermediate point and circuitry configured to at least one of supply the sub-6 GHz energy or receive the sub-6 GHz energy, the second antenna sub-system further including a second electrical connection coupled between the first conductor end and a ground plane of a device including the antenna system, the second conductor end being open. 
     
     
       21. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the antenna system is disposed within a wireless device, and wherein the antenna system further comprises an aperture tuner coupled between the first radiator of the second antenna sub-system and a ground plane of the wireless device. 
     
     
       22. The antenna system of  claim 1 , wherein the conductive portion comprises a loop antenna with a feed coupled between a first end of the second antenna sub-system and circuitry configured to at least one of supply the sub-6 GHz energy or receive the sub-6 GHz energy, and with a ground connection coupled between a second end of the second antenna sub-system and a ground plane of a device including the antenna system. 
     
     
       23. The antenna system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the first electrical current signals correspond to millimeter wave signals, and wherein the module further comprises circuitry configured to upconvert intermediate-frequency signals to the first electrical current signals or to downconvert the first electrical current signals to intermediate-frequency signals. 
 
     
     
       24. A method of transducing radio-frequency energy, the method comprising:
 transducing millimeter-wave energy by a plurality of millimeter-wave radiators backed by a ground conductor; and 
 transducing sub-6 GHz energy by a sub-6 GHz antenna sub-system by:
 exciting the ground conductor with at least a first portion of the sub-6 GHz energy to radiate the first portion of the sub-6 GHz energy from the ground conductor; or 
 receiving a second portion of the sub-6 GHz energy as wireless signals at the ground conductor, converting the wireless signals into electrical signals, and providing the electrical signals to a feed of the sub-6 GHz antenna sub-system; or 
 a combination thereof, 
 
 wherein transducing the sub-6 GHz energy comprises transducing first energy with one or more first frequencies between 700 MHz and 960 MHz and/or between 1.7 GHz and 2.7 GHz using a monopole that is separate from the ground conductor, and transducing second energy with one or more second frequencies between 1.25 GHz and 1.7 GHz using the ground conductor, and wherein the millimeter-wave energy has one or more frequencies above 23 GHz. 
 
     
     
       25. The method of  claim 24 , wherein exciting the ground conductor comprises capacitively coupling the first portion of the sub-6 GHz energy from a conductive portion of the sub-6 GHz antenna sub-system to the ground conductor, the conductive portion being physically separate from the ground conductor. 
     
     
       26. The method of  claim 25 , wherein the capacitively coupling comprises capacitively coupling the first portion of the sub-6 GHz energy from a meander line to the ground conductor. 
     
     
       27. The method of  claim 26 , wherein the capacitively coupling comprises coupling the first portion of the sub-6 GHz energy from the meander line to the ground conductor along at least portions of at least three edges of the ground conductor. 
     
     
       28. The method of  claim 24 , further comprising tuning the monopole to adjust a resonant frequency of the monopole. 
     
     
       29. The method of  claim 24 , wherein exciting the ground conductor comprises electrically connecting a sub-6 GHz signal to the ground conductor.